| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Madison, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Howker Ridge Trail, Osgood Trail, Watson Path, Brookside, Kelton Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, June 15, 2012 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Minor slowdown in Franconia Notch for construction. Only a few cars in the parking lot which is in good shape. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Rock hops. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trails in superb condition. It appears all the waterbars were recently well cleaned, and any blowdowns chopped out. There's very little vegetation encroachment anywhere. Kudos to the trail maintainers. At the base of Watson at the stream crossing, it isn't obvious that the trail crosses the brook, and a herd path tends to draw a hiker down a ways before it fades. I recalled having been suckered by this herd path many years ago, unfortunately only after I had had been fooled by it again today. Otherwise the trails are well signed. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Pepper had fun. There is no water above 3200' or so (and that was a small seep) on Howker, and one has to get way down Watson to find water there. Combine this with lots of exposure to the full sun today, and we found it necessary to slow down a bit, take some cooling stops to drink, lie in the moss a bit and wet his fur with unused water from a bowl on the hike up. After a nice break on top with shade under a rock, Pepper was ready to boogie on down, and it felt so good to sip 'n dip in the streams down low. The boulder fields and trails on Madison have a very rough crystalline structure which could be tough on soft paw pads. |
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 | Bugs: |
There was just enough of a breeze on top to pretty much keep the bugs away. There were just a few of the cairn "bees" but they were no problem away from them. No bug issues on the trails. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Howker Ridge is a delightful way to get to Madison; one of my favorite trails, but Pepper would prefer doing it in cooler or cloudier weather. Watson is one of the steeper and rougher trails for a descent, but still nice. Kelton was pretty good, with some nice footbeds for long stretches. The private lands at the base were recently thinned, but they did a good job of buffering the trail and stream, removing the slash and creating some landscape diversity, and limited their skid trail crossings. It had been a few years since I'd been on these trails, but I much prefer them to the usual fare especially Valley Way and will be back. We pretty much had the trails to ourselves, seeing only one other on our way down, and a nice group of guys on the peak. Great weather, great trails and views; a splendid way to make use of President's Day (floating) off. Thanks Abe. Take four scores out of petty cash. |
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 | Name: |
Pepper and Me |
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 | E-Mail: |
windriversjohn at gmail dot com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2012-06-15 |
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 | Link: |
 https:// |
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Disclaimer: Reports are not verified - conditions may vary. Use at own risk. Always be prepared when hiking. Observe all signs. Trail conditions reports are not substitutes for weather reports or common sense. |
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